With all the deals flying around on this Cyber-Monday, it's a great day to upgrade your router. Rather than getting one giant router, the best way to improve your home network is to invest in a mesh network system. These consist of multiple devices that you plug in throughout your home. They then work together to blanket a larger area in Wi-Fi. Two of my favorites from the past year are the Linksys Velop and the 2nd generation eero Home.

Which one should you pick up?

Linksys Velop

The Velop is known to hunt in packs of three... (Image Credit: Linksys)

Linksys

The Velop system is comprised of a tri-band mesh router that can pair with additional units (using a dedicated radio band separate from your Wi-Fi) to cover up to 6,000 square feet of space. It's got high power amplifiers and an impressive array of six internal antennas, Wi-Fi AC2200 with mu-mimo 2.4 GHz radio, a 716 MHz Quad Core processor, and 4 GB of flash memory, and 512 MB of RAM. If you're left a bit gobsmacked by all the numbers all you need to know is this - the Velop is a seriously powerful networking device packed into an unobtrusive geometric white tower.

It also comes with a thorough and very helpful setup app. If you're shaky when it comes to setting up a home network, the Linksys app will carefully walk you through every step, even telling you where to place the additional beacons. Once set up, the Velop system is strong and stable. My only complaint is that the app could be a bit more responsive and that the parental controls and security measures included are a bit weak when compared to other mesh offerings like AmpliFi and eero (though for eero you have to pay for extras).

If you're new to mesh networking and just the thought of setting up Wi-Fi makes you sweat, you'll want to give Velop a try. Even better, Linksys is currently throwing in a cable modem with the purchase of a Velop system. If you've upgraded your home Wi-Fi and still aren't getting the speeds you think you should be getting, your old modem is the likely culprit. You can get $100 off the Velop system and snag a free modem for $399 today only from the Linksys site.

eero Home

Compact and shiny (literally in the case of the beacons)

Anthony Karcz

Like the Linksys Velop system, eero Home generates a Wi-Fi network that relies on a central router and plug-in beacons that are placed around the area where you want to broadcast your network. I've been impressed by its stability and adaptability. It's given me none of the headaches other mesh networks have. I don't have devices that get stuck between beacons (or have beacons that won't relinquish hold on a device). I don't have to reboot the system every few days so that everything keeps talking to each other. It never crashes. The network is occasionally slower than I would expect, but slowdowns are fleeting. I never, ever have to worry about maintaining my home Wi-Fi network. In the two years since I've started reviewing mesh networking hardware, that has never happened (plus, the beacons can double as night lights, it's a nicer feature than you'd think).

The big advantage eero has is their app. The eero app not only is more responsive than Linksys' and provides easier access to network information I need (system speed, attached devices), they're also on the cusp of offering a massive network security deal with eero Plus. You'll get subscriptions to encrypt.me VPN, 1Password, and Malwarebytes, as well parental controls, browser protection, and content filtering for $99 per year (or $10 per month). That's $270 less than if you bought everything separately. It's a no-brainer, price-wise, and provides you with a convenient bundle of security apps that you should be using already. The new eero Plus subscription benefits will be rolling out this December.

The quality of the hardware, the ease of use of the app, and the added value of an eero Plus subscription makes it my choice for networking hardware this year. If you don't have an eero Home system yet, they're $50-off for Cyber Monday, starting at $250. Head over to their website to grab a system today.